Child protection

Concerns for a child’s safety

Children and young people have the right to be protected and to be safe from harm by others. Most children in Scotland grow up in a safe place, but sadly some do not. These children need extra help from adults to keep them safe.

You should contact Social Care Direct if you are worried about a child or young person's safety or wellbeing.

Call 999 in an emergency. You can also call the police on 101 if it's not urgent.

When you report a child at risk

We will take your call seriously. We will find out more to help us decide what to do next. Our next step may be to

take no further action

offer the family support

put the child and family in touch with another agency for support

start to investigate if we think that the child is not safe.

We are all responsible for making sure that all children are safe. Everyone in a community plays a vital role in looking after the children who live there.